Spanish Fiesta Just Because

What better time to whip out the Sangria and paella than the end of the year, the supposed festive time of the year? I was never a big fan of the holiday madness but my partner in crime and I just wanted an excuse to make simple fare with lots of wine flowing and Spanish food seemed to fit the bill. It definitely was not inspired by Spain On the Road Again, that annoying PBS show that should really be dubbed Beauty and the Beast. First of all, it's not really a food show because the footage of Mark Bittman canoodling with eye candy in the form of a gorgeous Spanish woman young enough to be his daughter around Alhambra is longer than a two-minute meal they have. The other eye candy is Gwyneth Paltrow driving around with Mario Batali in a convertible making the car sponsors happy. I mean, she doesn't even eat meat! Hello? The only redeeming part was the episode where they all go to Albert Adria's (Ferran Adria's brother) joint Inopia in Barcelona for a positively amazing-looking Spanish feast.

But I digress. Here's our menu:
-Jamon Serrano and Arugula Salad with Pomegranate Salsa
-Roasted Root Vegetables Salad with Persimmons (the only non-Spanish thing)
-Classic Tortilla Espanola and a nuevo version made courtesy of Ferran Adria
-Tuna Croquettes
-Leeks with Romesco Sauce (pictured right)
-Lamb Meatballs with Red Pepper and Chickpea Sauce
-Paella

As for drinks, we had Sangria, Cava and red wine.



Out of the dishes I made, I enjoyed the ham and arugula salad the most because I usually find salads very boring and this one was both interesting and flavorful. It also met my strange criteria of cooking a first-time ingredient -- and ricotta salata took the prize. I don't like ricotta cheese in its gooey, watery form (let's face it -- we have it because it's good for us). But this hardened, dry version was wonderfully dense, clean-tasting and complemented the salty serrano ham, nuttiness of the arugula and tanginess of the pomegranate dressing perfectly. The ham could have been softer and better quality but it sure saved me a trip (and more) to the Cheese Store in Beverly Hills. Interesting factoid: it's Suzanne Goin's recipe of Lucques and AOC fame although I'm not a big fan of her restaurants.



I also liked the nuevo estilo tortilla espanola made with potato chips (and piquillo peppers and ham) but I think the downfall for this dish was that I premade it too much in advance so the egg part was too hard by the time we reheated it. It was a bit too salty for me as well. After all, potato chips are super salty and even though I didn't add any salt, the serrano ham bits added more saltiness and the result was sodium overload even for a salt-lover like me.


The classic Spanish omelet version (left) was clean and simple. I really liked the broiled leeks with the wonderfully nutty (from the almonds) and smoky (from the roasted piquillo peppers) romesco sauce. I fondly recalled a great No Reservations episode where Spaniards tossed a bunch of leeks in their skins on a massive grill and later delightfully peeled the skins to reveal a perfectly cooked beauty that they dipped generously with romesco sauce and just stuffed into their mouths with their hands. Primal eating at its best.



The unequivocal star of the evening was the paella. It's always a crowd-pleaser to begin with, but think juicy chicken thighs, meaty clams, pale pink shrimp sprinkled with my personal favorite, chorizo slices. It was made on a barbecue grill after browning the chicken on a skillet, which not only gave it a slightly smoky flavor but also delivered the best part of making rice on a pan -- the crunchy, toasted bits that form in the bottom that you must scrape with all your God-given strength (and so worth it).

We made sure to balance out the meatiness with some vegetables and the root vegetable dish (pictured above) was just that. It's decidedly non-Spanish but I had made it before and it's such a winter dish that I had to serve it. It includes rutabagas, turnips, parsnips and carrots that have been roasted and become incredibly sweet in the process. Then tossed with some juicy and sweet fuyu persimmons, caramelized shallots with some oil-based dressing tossed with some Belgian endives and frisee. The icing: blood-red pomegranate seeds adorning the dish like jewels. They make a great garnish for salads and entrees and have such a tart taste and unbeatable texture (pop!) when you bite into them.

There were certainly some misses. I thought the lamb meatballs were far too dense and needed some oil to be added in the patty mixture. The yogurt sauce ameliorated the dryness but not by much. It's Nancy Silverton's recipe but as much as I love her breads and pizzas, these didn't do the trick for me. The tuna croquettes were a disaster. Maybe it was my use of whole wheat flour and lactose-free milk that threw off the recipe.


We finished the meal off with pears poached in wine and other goodies topped with vanilla ice cream. The pears were soft and tinged with the Merlot's deep red color and full-bodied flavor. All in all a good meal and we're already planning for our next one in who knows how many months. We're thinking Moroccan... Stay tuned.

PS: a special thank you to ctg for her great food styling and photos.

Soup's On: Simple and Easy Entertaining

It's time for our quarterly dinner party extravaganza again. My cooking-mate, YT and I decided to do something with seasonal vegetables, themed around harvest. We leafed through vegetarian (I know!) cookbooks and many others and the results were an eclectic mix of healthy dishes that brought out the best of the ingredients' flavors and textures.

It being cold outside, I decided to do a soup sampler and we altogether made four soups, including mint pea, roasted red pepper, red onion and corn with chipotle. Yes, I did color-coordinate it somewhat, but flavors ruled.

Before I go into the meal, let me tell you about the appetizers we served: bresaola with persimmons and fennel, cheese puffs and dried apricots stuffed with a goat cheese and mango chutney mixture, each topped with a single jewel of pomegranate seed.



The beauty of these dishes is that they were so simple to make. It was just a matter of finding the right combination of ingredients to create magic. The saltiness of the thinly sliced, air-dried beef went so well with the sweetness of the persimmons (I used ripe fuyu) and licorice taste of fennel as well as its crunchiness. Just drizzled some olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the layering and voila. It looked and tasted like a million dollars. The cheese puffs were soft, warm and cheesy -- what's not to like? I had to stop myself from consuming one too many to save room for what was to come.

The apricot and goat cheese appetizer was good but not fantastic. There was definitely a novelty factor but not sure I'd make it again.

Let's get into the soups and main dishes. The soups were all excellent. I had always fantasized about serving the soups in small shots like they do in restaurants so it was nice being able to do that, in various colors to boot.

It's hard to come up with a favorite soup as they were all delish.


Sampling the soups was like a wine tasting -- there seemed to be a proper order depending on the intensity of the flavors.

I slurped the corn soup first and savored with delight the concentrated corn flavor spiked up with roasted chipotle peppers. This recipe came from the Greens cookbook. I only added a touch of cream so it wasn't too heavy. Even though corn isn't in season, it was a wonderfully comforting soup. As was the mint pea soup topped with smoked salmon and creme fraiche. This soup is versatile because frozen peas are always "in season" and the bright green lights up the table. The mint and pea combination is a classic one, of course, and it was nice complementing it with the saltiness of the salmon and the creme, which is always welcome as long as it doesn't overwhelm. The roasted red pepper soup, given a slightly Indian take with cumin and cilantro, was an unusual combination that worked very well (the lovely orange hue further brightened the table). The recipe from Food & Wine Magazine (one of my favorite recipe sources) called for seared scallops on top that I skipped. I had the red onion soup last because it was the heartiest. It also had the most texture with chunky onion strips that were sweet from caramelization and floating in this delectable deep red concoction. This recipe was from the Greens cookbook as well.

For salads, we had a cornucopia of winter vegetables that included leeks, cauliflower, squash, baby carrots and turnips to name a few, with a garlicky parsley dressing that added just the right amount of flavor and color to the winter veggies.

We also had an arugula and serrano ham salad with slivers of shaved ricotta salata topped with pomegranate seeds. This salad is one of my favorite salads, not only because it looks beautiful but also tastes so good.

Ok, it's not exactly guilt-free because of the ham but it's only dotted with ham, not overwhelmed by it. And the pomegranate salsa using pomegranate molasses is the perfect dressing for this salty, crunchy and slightly sweet salad. It's so easy to make, looks gorgeous on the table and tastes great -- a surefire winner at dinner parties! You'll notice I've made this for a Spanish fiesta before to much raves.

I also made a dish with brussels sprouts, my current obsession. I had cooked with them before but had never roasted them. David Chang was famously quoted as saying that "you can't f**k them up" and true to this statement, his rendition of brussels sprouts became the most popular item in his restaurants.

I was given a cool-sounding recipe from GQ's blog and first tried the one in italics on the bottom of the entry. The healthier version was out of this world, so I had to try the spicy one using Sriracha sauce Chang had.

OMG. The thick-cut bacon bits cooked to crunchy perfection certainly helped and squirted with some "death ketchup," Sriracha sauce, it doesn't get any better. The version using olive oil, lemon juice and almond slivers was just as delicious, if not as decadent.

I highly recommend anyone try this recipe immediately. If it conjured up some bad dinner table memories associated with brussels sprouts, this may just be the opportunity for you to rid yourself of this once and for all. It's a nutritious, readily available vegetable that's very versatile, after all. Ok, I need to stop raving about this. Focus on the entire meal.

For the two main meat dishes, we had a wonderful leg of lamb stuffed with bacon and sage -- the perfect winter dish -- and cornish hen roasted with whole garlic bulbs, shallots and grapes.

This recipe came from one of my favorite cookbooks, Great Food Fast, but most of the recipes are available online because they were featured on the PBS show, Everyday Food. I don't watch that show as much but love its simple and easy recipes. The hens were moist and juicy and the grapes imparted a great sweetness to the whole dish. Some of my guests simply took a whole roasted garlic bulb, scooped out the caramelized garlic and consumed them solo -- like morsels of garlic candy.

I made good use of the carcasses to make yummy broth with some veggies and ginger for aroma.

We also had a side dish of potato provencal with tomato and red onions but I didn't care much for this dish. It didn't toast easily on top despite spreading some butter on and it was on the bland side. I probably wouldn't make it again. I have a good potato gratin dish that's a bit less healthy but a lot more flavorful.

If you have a lot of strong-flavored dishes, like very spicy items, this potato dish may temper those flavors because it is mildly flavored.

It just wasn't anything special.

We also had a celery root puree as another starch that was good.

For dessert, YT made an amazingly good pear tart in a cast iron pan. The crust was perfectly crunchy and crumbly at the same time, much like puff pastry but less buttery than that.


All in all a successful dinner party. A big shoutout to our resident mixologist who made the best pomegranate margaritas, complete with salt-rimmed glasses and jewels of pomegranate seeds floating in the glasses.

YT and I used to make it a point to make the most elaborate things but now with a few dinner parties under our belts, we're veering toward simple, hassle-free cooking that is all about the flavor that leaves enough time to enjoy the company of our guests. Not that we hadn't done this before but you know what I mean.

We also used the Zuni Cafe cookbook for some of the recipes.

Happy eating!

Best of NY Part III: Squid Ink Paella at Midnight

Here is the third and last installment of NY eats that were most memorable.

1) Socarrat

One of my biggest gripes about L.A. was that it didn't have serviceable Spanish food. Then The Bazaar came along, except Jose Andres decided he wasn't going to serve paella, the classic Spanish rice dish that had so eluded me both in the kitchen (could never get it to cook evenly) and restaurants (yuk). So when I heard about this "paella bar" that specializes in this dish and also got an overwhelming endorsement from a fellow NY-based foodie, I had to try it -- even if it was after two bloody burgers and a good chunk of a divine porterhouse earlier in the day.



Entering this narrow joint with one long, communal table just before closing around midnight, I wasn't hungry but this paella tinted in black squid ink and topped with shrimp, almost raw slices of scallops, pieces of fish, squid, fava beans and slivers of piquillo peppers was a revelation. It came with an aioli that I used to dip the meaty shrimp and sometimes spoonfuls of rice. Socarrat refers to the crusty layer that forms at the bottom of the pan. In short, the best part of the paella. The leftovers tasted almost as good when heated from home hours later (our server urged us not to microwave the paella -- I dutifully complied). I still dream about this paella.

Socarrat
259 West 19th Street
New York, NY 10011
(212) 462-1000

2) Russ & Daughters

This place is an institution, and conveniently located adjacent to Katz's, so I sampled its famed bagel and lox. The salmon was pretty darn perfect, but I wish I would have gotten a plain bagel as the one with everything on it was too salty for my taste. The saltiness of the salmon made it sodium overkill but besides this minor detail, what's not to like about a bagel with smoke salmon, cream cheese, tomatoes and red onions? Ok, I prefer warm bagels and this one wasn't. Not sure if that's the way I'm supposed to have it but I like them heated because otherwise the bagel felt too dense and not soft enough.

Russ & Daughters
179 East Houston Street
New York, NY 10002
(212) 475-4880

3) Kefi

This shrine to nouveau Greek cuisine helmed by chef Michael Psilakis is a bit hectic and cramped but the grilled octopus salad on top of beans was by far the best dish. The octopus was smoky and soft and complemented the almost pureed beans very well. It had a slight crunch from diced onions that also gave it a refreshing bite.

Kefi
505 Columbus Avenue
New York, NY 10024
(212) 873-0200

4) Artichoke Pizza

Here was another 2 a.m. pizza run but imagine my surprise when I see a long line outside of a tiny storefront waiting at that hour, in the rain. Obviously, this joint has some serious fanatics. Everyone has their favorites but I liked the Margarita. Fortunately, it only serves four kinds of pizzas besides Margarita: Sicilian, which is the square one, artichoke, which is like a slightly fancier version of cream of mushroom soup on pizza dough (this doesn't mean I didn't like it) and finally, the odd crab pizza. This last one I didn't get but of the other three, Margarita had the best combination of thin crust, cheese and tomato. My partner in crime who stood in line and kept me company in freezing rain liked the Sicilian. The debate goes on...

Artichoke Pizza
328 East 14th Street
New York, NY 10003
(212) 228-2004

5) Ippudo

I'm always on the hunt for fantastic ramen, so had to try this NY outpost of a Japanese chain that got raves from NYT critics and message boards alike.

It was unfortunate that I had it as my first meal of the day, which, despite its soupy goodness, was on the heavy side, even for me. I mean, I usually live for that stuff -- milky broth full of porky flavor and robustness. I got the Shiromaru Hakata Classic with the works, slices of pork that deliciously dissolve in your mouth from lengthy cooking, green onions, bamboo shoots, egg, red pickled ginger slices and wood-eared mushrooms. I also tried the Akamura Modern, which had a stronger flavor that I didn't like as much. The base of the broth was the same but the strong flavors came from garlic oil and miso mixed in.

While it was a good bowl of ramen, I like the Hakata ramen at Shinsengumi here better.

Ippudo
65 4th Avenue
New York, NY 10003
(212) 388-0088

6) Il Laboratorio del Gelato

Now onto dessert: This gelato shop is so small, blink and you could miss it, but the green tea and hazelnut flavors were definitely worth stopping by.

I've always hated green tea ice-creams that look green but taste like anything but green tea -- you know, the watered down flavor. I could actually taste the green tea in this one. The hazelnut wasn't as good but equally deep in flavor.

95 Orchard Street
New York, NY 10002
(212) 343-9922



7) Donut Plant

I'm not one to crave anything too sweet for breakfast or in general, but one bite of the plain glazed yeast donut was one of the most comforting ways to start your day.

The donut was soft as I bit into it and the sugar on the glaze, yes, the sugar was plentiful, but nothing that a dunk in some strong coffee can't remedy.

I had the plainest kind to really see what this donut shop is made of, but it offers a huge array of wacky varieties.

Donut Plant
379 Grand Street
New York, NY 10002
(212) 505-3700


And finally, there were two disappointments: Shake Shack, whose famed burger underwhelmed me, and Joe's Shanghai, which I should have known better not to go to. What was I thinking when I have Din Tai Fung right here at home?

Cooking: Spanish Chorizo + Manchego Cheese on Crusty Bread = Best Snack Ever

After all that Korean food, I must say I sometimes got a hankering for some serious cheeses and hams. And what better counterbalance to rice and kimchi than chorizo Espanol with manchego cheese on crusty bread?

I got all the goodies from my favorite online Spanish store, La Tienda, which has a great selection of Spanish hams and cheeses, not to mention olives and piquillo peppers -- the list goes on.

I tried this chorizo Espanol for the first time and it was divine. I usually get the Palacios brand but these were sliced paper thin and seemed lighter (although probably not by much).

Perfect for a Spanish breakfast sandwich-late afternoon snack-cum-tapas-kind of fix.

Try ordering the Jamon Iberico de Bellota if you haven't tried it yet at The Bazaar, which is one of the few restaurants that serve good quality stuff. It's like buttah, I tell you.

Buen provecho, vale!

Cooking with Jose Andres: Beef Sirloin with a confit of Piquillo Peppers

Jose Andres owns one of my favorite restaurants in LA, the Bazaar. But long before he landed here, I'd already been enamored of his DC restaurants, Cafe Atlantico and Zaytinya, with a little less love for Jaleo. I've wanted to try Minibar for some time but it's on my list for a future visit.

The man knows how to cook good, creative and beautiful food. And I confess I've probably watched most if not all of his PBS Made in Spain travel and cooking shows. Astonishing (to quote the man himself)! Heck, I've even downloaded music from the Spanish bands featured on the show!

Anyway, I have his tapas cookbook, which I cherish and have used many times to great results. It is, however, a bit weak on the meat side, so I enlisted the help of his online recipes from the show. This beef dish was simple and delicious, particularly the piquillo peppers. I know I say this a lot, but truly, it's hard to go wrong with these babies. Add a bit of garlic and olive oil and you've got a great combination of meat and smoky, garlicky peppers softened by long hours in the oven under low heat. I also used leftover peppers to great effect in my turkey sandwiches to give them a flavor boost.

Flat iron steaks weren't as easy to find as I would have thought so I substituted with skirt steak, which was good but a bit fatty. I used a heavy cast iron grill over the stove that worked very well to grill the meat (fantastic grill marks). I could go on and on about the virtues of this tool, but that's another post. Enjoy.

Cooking: What's Not to Like About This Chorizo Appetizer?

These parsnip, chorizo and manchego cheese bites are super easy to make and taste like a million dollars. My dinner party guests couldn't get enough of them. If you have leftovers, they could be like breakfast on a stick. You could easily serve these for brunch as a side to a sunny side-up although I didn't get there because there were none left! Parsnips look like carrots but are beige in color and have a nuttier taste than potatoes. Shout-out to Martha Stewart for this recipe. Buen provecho!

Roasted Parsnip and Chorizo Bites

* 2 parsnips
* 2 tsp olive oil
* Pinch of coarse salt and ground pepper
* 8 slices (1/4-inch thick) spicy chorizo (Spanish kind, not the raw Mexican kind)
* 1 oz Manchego cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Peel parsnips and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices on the diagonal; toss slices with oil and season with salt and pepper.

Roast until lightly browned (12-13 minutes) in a single layer on a baking sheet; flip slices halfway through.

Push parsnips to one side of the sheet and add chorizo; roast just enough to heat chorizo through (about two minutes); let cool five minutes.

Break cheese into 1/2-inch chunks.

Layer parsnip, chorizo, Manchego, and parsnip; spear with a toothpick and serve warm.